Carmel
by Emmaline Ezra
Summary: What happens when Rachel Berry has had enough of William McKinley High School and decides to attempt building a relationship with her birth mother? Well, you'll just have to find out.
1. PROLOGUE

**PROLOGUE**

"You cannot possibly be serious, Jacob. Kurt would never do that to me. That's downright preposterous," Rachel Berry seethed at the boy who'd most decidedly blocked her way in the hall with news he called 'of significant value'. Normally she would have stalked right past him, but when he said it was about her reputation as a singer, she'd stopped. And now she seriously wished she hadn't.

"The whole school is talking about it." Jacob pushed his glasses upwards, swaying sideways as he was wont to do when he was in Rachel's presence and his nerves were getting the better of him. "It was apparently very blatant, and even Mister Schuester knew about it."

_That's impossible. Mr. Schue would never do that to me...I'm the best. I'm the star. I don't need hand-outs like that from anyone. And he would've said something...he should've...right?_

Jacob sneezed right then, which brought her back to reality. She gave him a death glare. "What makes you so sure your purported reliable source is correct in those assumptions?" The reply was almost smarmy as he handed a CD to Rachel. "Here. Watch that." The bell rang, and with that, he slinked away.

Rachel's brain was swimming. She had a free period, so she could actually head right to the nearest computer to watch whatever it was Jacob had given her. What if it was a trap? What if it was something gross, something Jacob just wanted to bait her into seeing? Her mind drifted further, though...what if he was actually telling the truth? What if there was at least a semblance of accuracy in what he'd been saying? After all, he liked Rachel. He wouldn't sabotage her or anything, right?

After a bit more pondering, Rachel decided she would watch the contents of the CD. After all, if they turned out to be anything other than what it was meant to be, she could go straight to Mister Schuester. Besides, she reasoned as she turned to head for the library, it would also serve to clear Kurt's name in all this.

So it was with a bit of an open mind that she settled down at a computer terminal in the library to watch. It was shaky at first, obviously taken from a hidden angle-as far as Rachel could tell, it was from a corner in the choir room where extra chairs were stacked with other things. She made a mental note to tell the glee club that it wasn't safe. Soon, a gaggle of glee club members trailed in: Kurt, Mercedes, Tina. Not far behind them was Brad.

It became apparent that they intended to run scales, or some such. Rachel frowned. There was nothing to this video at all! What was Jacob talking about? Just as she was about to stop the feed, Brad began playing a very familiar melody. Kurt was humming along. Tina had walked to the door, looked out for a moment, and nodded._ Okay!_ she mouthed. Kurt grinned, and began the song from the top.

Three minutes into the song, there was more to the footage-but Rachel had seen enough. Or rather, heard enough.

She fully intended to give Kurt a piece of her mind. First, she reviewed her conversation with Jacob. The McKinley grapevine had been buzzing with the news for awhile, apparently. For a second she thought of confronting Mister Schue, but decided that could wait. First, she needed to find Kurt. A quick check of her cellphone told her she had time. She knew just where to find him.

"Kurt Elizabeth Hummel!" she yelled down the crowded hall, seeing him as he walked out of a classroom. "I need to talk to you!" She began stalking towards him, scowling.

From the first ten minutes that the news had begun spreading like wildfire all over McKinley, Kurt knew that it was only a matter of time before Rachel confronted him. It didn't help his case at all that it was that despicable creep Jacob who'd apparently uncovered it and began telling everyone he could. _Rachel deserves the truth_, he'd said when confronted. And as much as Kurt hated to admit it, that gossip-mongering guy was right.

For the rest of the day Kurt had mulled over what he would do when it happened, and he totally had a plan-although none of it involved the lunchtime rush in the halls. _So much for a subtle talk._ He took a deep breath and turned towards her, tilting his head with a soft smile.

When she finally reached him, Rachel took a deep breath, clearing her throat before looking Kurt straight in the eyes. "There's been some very disturbing news going around, Kurt. And while I would normally disregard such matters as a smear campaign meant to ravage the glee club's team spirit and camaraderie, certain evidence has come to light that I simply cannot ignore." She crossed her arms. "Just be honest with me, Kurt. Tell it to me straight. I am not one to take kindly to be made a fool of; you of all people should know this." She paused, taking another deep breath and crossing her arms forcefully. "Did you deliberately mess up the last note in Defying Gravity when we had that sing-off?"

The sharp breath Kurt took before even attempting to say anything in response coupled with the look in his eyes confirmed Rachel's suspicions. It was absolutely true. She shook her head, blinking back tears. She wanted to ask why, but words were failing her. She expected the worst from a lot of people, but for some reason, she actually thought she and Kurt had been making progress. Apparently, she was wrong. Finally, Kurt looked up from the floor and reached out to touch her, but she shrugged him off and walked quickly down the rest of the hall. Mr. Schuester was simply going to have to have Glee club without her that day.

Rounding the corner leading out to the main hall, she bumped right into Santana and Brittany. Rachel sighed inwardly, mumbling an apology and attempting to step away. Santana moved to block her path, Brittany following suit.

"Where are you going in such a huff, dwarf?"

Brittany smiled at her, at least. "Oh hi, Rachel. I didn't see you there."

"Hello, Santana. Brittany," Rachel began, nodding towards the blonde. "I'm going home. I'm simply not feeling well today and I feel it would be entirely unfair for the rest of you to be exposed to what may be something more than the common cold." She took another step, but Santana blocked her again.

"You are such a drama queen," the taller brunette snorted, crossing her arms. "I have a feeling you're just running away because you can't handle the truth. The truth is, Kurt's better than you. You're not a star at all. You're so pathetic people let you win things to shut you up," she cackled.

Rachel barely managed to hold back her tears, shoving past the cheerleaders even as an oblivious Brittany called "Bye, Rachel!" after her. She finally stopped when she reached an isolated area, furiously wiping the tears away. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. Or break. Not this time.

It was a very lucky thing, she supposed, that her dads had decided to let her drive now. It was even luckier that they'd lent her the car for the week. Making her way across the parking lot, she started to hum a soft tune to pick herself up. She slid into the car, turned the ignition, turned on the radio...and began to laugh even as tears rolled down her cheeks again.

"Cornflake Girl. Go figure," she muttered, pulling herself together and heading out. She sang along to a few of the lines - _this is not really happening/you bet your life it is _- but mostly fought to clear her head. There was something particularly different about this incident, really. She was used to being made fun of. Used to all the pain. Used to all the ridicule and not being taken seriously. She'd had slushies thrown at her face consistently. She'd been told her fashion sense was non-existent.

And she'd managed to brush it all aside. Managed to cry for a little while, then pick herself back up. Why, then, was this different?

Halfway home, her phone buzzed; someone was calling her. She glanced at it. Finn Hudson. Of course. She ignored it and the three succeeding calls that came after. And then Mr. Schuester was calling her. She thought about it, but shook her head and slipped the phone into her bag. No, she couldn't deal with any of them. She wouldn't. Not today. Not for awhile.

The Berry household was no mansion, but it wasn't a shanty either. Rachel walked through the ornate wooden doors, humming along to her iPod. "Dad? Daddy? I'm home!" She grabbed a banana and chewed on it thoughtfully as she made her way up to her room.

On the door was a Post-It in her dad's handwriting, telling her that they were going to be out late and could she just order pizza, please? No need to make dinner, they would eat out. She smiled, taking the note and shutting her door. Home alone. That was fine, she wanted to be alone anyway. Just as she'd set her bag down, put her iPod in it's dock and flopped onto her bed, Defying Gravity began to play. She groaned, shaking her head and getting up to change it. Since it was on shuffle, she hit next then made towards her bed again...except she never made it.

It was almost like a cosmic joke. Rachel could've sworn, after all, that she'd deleted the song ages ago. She looked at her iPod in disbelief.

_Funny/Did you hear that/Funny/Yeah, the guy said honey/You're a funny girl_

Rachel couldn't bring herself to change the song or turn it off. Instead, she found herself singing along. As it went on, she went around her room, almost as if she were in a daze. By the end, she'd walked to her speakers and turned them off.

Instead of crying, she actually felt better.

And she'd figured out what it was that was different.

Rachel Barbra Berry was tired of being the doormat. Tired of having to have extra clothes because of all the slushies that were tossed in her face daily. Tired of taking the so-called higher road. Tired of being taken for granted. Tired of being in an environment where she wasn't allowed to shine at all-when she was, it usually came at a price.

The reality was the world had been cruel to Rachel because she'd allowed it for far too long.

She moved, picking up her phone, dialling a number she knew by heart. As it rang, she said a silent prayer that he would pick up.

* * *

><p>One ring. Two rings. Three. And then... "Rachel?"<p>

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Jesse."

Jesse St. James was actually in the middle of a rather interesting meeting, if it could be called that. He was in Shelby Corcoran's office in Carmel High, surrounded by four redheads who'd suddenly stopped chattering and were hanging onto his every word. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Rachel bit her lip, suddenly apprehensive.

"I know you. Something's wrong. You're going to have to tell me, or I can't help you as much as I'd like to."

"It's just...I'm done."

"Done?"

"I'm done with being taken advantage of. Done with being their scapegoat. Done with being underappreciated. I'm done!" Rachel practically shrieked before collapsing on her bed.

A pause. "Do you want me to come over?"

This time, she didn't hesitate. "Yes, please. The sooner the better."

"Alright." Jesse hung up, extricating himself from the gaggle of redheads who were staring after him. "Sorry, Belles. Something serious just came up."

"But Jesse!" they all whined in unison. "The line-up!"

The curly-headed miva simply smiled, leaning to kiss each blushing redhead on the cheek. "Ladies, ladies. There's time for that. Right now, I have to tend to my heart. Don't forget your showfaces! They need to be in sync! It's barely enough that you're identical."

With an exaggerated bow, he left, making his way out to the parking lot.

* * *

><p>Three rooms away from Shelby's office was the massive IT hub of Carmel. In the farthest corner of the room was a partition that was higher than the rest. The terminal was bigger, too; it housed two extra monitors and a CPU unlike anything anyone had ever seen. The space seemed like a room in itself.<p>

Seated at that terminal, in a plush crimson chair, was the owner of the system. Atari Chung pushed her glasses back, chewing on a Mars bar, glancing at a spot on one screen curiously. Jesse was supposed to be in a meeting with the Sawyer sisters in the coach's office. She reached for her mouse, clicking on a spot; the quadruplets were all still there, and it was apparent that Jesse had just walked out. For a minute she thought there'd been a disagreement, but closer inspection led her to figure out what had happened. Or, in this case, who.

Rachel Berry.

Atari had never met Rachel but she knew all about her. More than Rachel probably knew about herself. It was Atari that knew exactly what Jesse had been doing for Shelby and why. It was Atari that had found Rachel for Shelby to begin with, although not entirely by accident. That, though, was a long story in itself.

For now she needed to figure out what was going on. A few keystrokes told her Rachel had called Jesse. A few more keystrokes-and the Twitter account of one Jacob Ben Israel-told her what had gone down in McKinley earlier in the day. No wonder she called Jesse.

The brunette leaned back, reviewing her options. The light from her screens bounced off of her glasses. Eventually, she reached for her phone, calling Shelby.

It didn't take more than one ring for her to pick up. "Atari?"

"Jesse's on his way to Rachel. Seems Rachel was massively embarrased by something or other today."

"Alright. And?"

"I think Rachel's reached a breaking point. Her MySpace account is gone."

"... Does Jesse know you're calling me?"

"No."

"Keep an eye on them."

"Yes ma'am."

"Good girl."

Atari hung up, exhaling loudly. On another screen her avatar was being pounded by a smaller character because she'd left it idling; she chuckled, deciding to let the other person have fun for a bit more. She found that Rachel was at home, so she simply switched to yet another frame on her screen, glancing at her clock. 3:14PM.

This was going to be an interesting afternoon.

* * *

><p>William Schuester knew he wasn't pefect. In fact, he was rather far from it, and had no illusions towards anything else. He did, however, pride himself on doing the best for his kids. And by kids, of course, he meant New Directions. So when Kurt walked into his office flanked by Tina without knocking, he instantly knew something was wrong.<p>

"She knows," Kurt sighed, slumping onto a chair.

Will blinked, turning to Tina. "You know what?"

Tina shook her head. "No, Mr. Schue. Rachel. Rachel knows."

"Knows what?" he replied, even more confused.

"Rachel knows I threw the note during the Defying Gravity sing-off. She found out. Seems Jacob Ben Israel has a hidden camera in the choir room. Or had one, anyway, since we couldn't find it," Kurt replied. "She confronted me earlier then stormed out. Apparently she went home, because she's not in the nurse's office. She's not answering anyone's calls."

Knowing how sensitive Rachel was, Will exhaled loudly before grabbing his phone. He tried calling Rachel twice, to no avail. "Don't worry, Kurt. It's Rachel. She'll be fine."

"That's not all Jacob found out," Tina piped up, patting Kurt's shoulder. "There's pretty serious stuff going on, Mr. Schue."

Will frowned. "Alright, get everyone to the choir room. Let's figure this out."

"What about you, Mr. Schue?" Tina asked as Kurt silently got to his feet.

"I'm going to find Jacob," Will replied, moving towards the door.


	2. Act 1: Raw

**A/N:** Holy crap so many story alerts! And reviews? I get reviews? Whattt.

Thank you, everyone! Sorry it took me forever to update. It won't take me almost a year to update again, I promise~

* * *

><p><strong>ACT 1: Raw<strong>

There might as well have been a black, heavy, raging cloud of doom hanging over New Directions when they convened in the WMHS choir room that afternoon.

"We're finding out today, aren't we?" Mercedes sighed. None of them had bothered sitting in their usual seats, instead settling in a circle in the middle of the room while waiting for Mr. Schuester. She'd put her head on Kurt's shoulder, squeezing his hand.

"That's what Mr. Schue said," Puck muttered. He cast a sideways glance at Mike and Tina, who were simply nodding, before turning back to the guitar he was tuning.

Poor Kurt had taken Rachel's 'odd behavior' pretty heavily. He was convinced it was his fault and his fault alone, and no amount of reassurance from Mercedes convinced him otherwise. Karofsky's continued abuse wasn't helping any. Blaine Anderson, his 'special friend' from Dalton Academy, had tried to reassure him too; while _that _helped, it still made him feel pretty awful.

Not as miserable as Finn, though. The quarterback, who was also now the sole captain for New Directions, was bordering on flat-out depression. He barely said anything to the others, which didn't make much of a difference considering they were all pointedly ignoring his presence.

Not that he could blame them.

They'd known something was up after Rachel hadn't shown up at school for three straight days after she discovered Kurt's "treachery". It was natural for her to be offended, a bunch of the ND kids would give her that, but it wasn't natural for her not to update her Facebook (she'd ditched MySpace long ago, thanks to a long talk with Artie) or even post passive-aggressive Tweets. There was nothing. Radio silence. And when the weekend had come around, there was still nothing.

When Rachel finally did show up at WMHS again, she'd spent a week all but avoiding them, not bothering to show up for glee club. And then one day Finn cornered her, and that hadn't ended well at all.

_"We need to get ready for Regionals, Rach. I've had enough of your dramatic crap. So has everyone else. Kurt's sorry. He is. He won't do it again. It's not that you're not talented and it's not that you need to be babied, okay? We're sorry. Fine, you're the alpha female. Kurt can't hold a candle to you. There. Happy? We need to pull together right now. You're the co-captain, for crying out loud!"_

_Finn towered over her, glowering, leaning with an arm on a locker door to keep her from going anywhere. She hadn't had a choice but to talk to him._

_"Finn, none of you have any appreciation for me. This isn't just about the Defying Gravity high note. You don't get it, do you? No, no, of course not. You just proved that with everything you just said. Really, Finn, please leave me alone. All of you. If you're done, I have-" Rachel hadn't been able to finish, because Finn smacked the locker he'd been leaning on with a frustrated growl and kissed her._

_Caught unaware, it was all Rachel could do not to fall over. She pushed him away and ran down the hall, all the way out to the street, and called Jesse._

Things had snowballed from there. As it turned out, Rachel had spent the week she was "missing in action" talking to her dads, Jesse, and reconnecting with her birth mother on several levels. By the time she'd returned to WMHS, she had a big decision to make. It was all up to her, she'd been reassured. No pressure from Shelby, full support from her dads.

Ironically enough, it had been Finn's actions that made Rachel's mind up for her.

-x-X-x-X-x-

Cassidy Granville was not happy. The mezzo-soprano co-captain of Vocal Adrenaline had walked into the office of Shelby expecting another one of their usual meetings. Being "co-captain" was really just a title more than anything; everyone knew Jesse St. James was _the _captain. He was also Shelby's golden child. At some point, rumors had floated that he was actually her son from her girlhood; with the resurgence of that Berry girl, though, that had been debunked pretty quickly.

Oh, how Cassidy _hated _the loud, neurotic brunette. Especially when Jesse had apparently developed real feelings for her. Everyone in Carmel knew that Jesse belonged to Cassidy. It was just taking Jesse awhile to figure it out for himself. They were young, and Jesse's way with women was vital to Vocal Adrenaline and his career in general. Besides, in showbusiness, relationships were either blatantly flaunted or simply kept between the two people in the said relationship. Theirs was more of the latter sort.

Her train of thought was interrupted by Rachel, who was seated right next to Jesse and going off in that shrill tone of hers. "I'm absolutely sure this is what I want," Rachel was saying, as Cassidy moved from where she'd stood frozen by the door to her usual seat.

"There you are," Shelby snippily smiled. _About damn time. _"Cassidy, you know my daughter Rachel."

_Since when does she refer to Berry as her daughter?_ Cassidy instantly pulled a showface. It was weak, but she figured Rachel wouldn't be able to tell. "Of course. Hello, Rachel...what are you doing here? Running out of ideas in McStinkley?"

Rachel started to say something as soon as Cassidy said hello, but when the taller girl finished, she simply bit her tongue. Jesse tensed beside her. Shelby was the one who spoke. "Actually, Rachel has left 'McStinkley', as you so crudely put it. I called you here to tell you that as of today, Rachel Barbra Berry is a member of Vocal Adrenaline. She's going to need the essentials. The rest, Atari's taking care of."

Jesse was nodding as Shelby spoke, and started as soon as she finished. "Rachel has her driver's license, and she's agreed to take a Rover that isn't blindingly pink to keep with our uniform dark hues. The others don't know, and they won't know until some point in rehearsal today."

_Well shit._ "I don't suppose you've seen the rulebook," Cassidy managed to say, showface still plastered on her face. Her cheeks were starting to hurt-she'd stretched her mouth too far upward again. She'd worry about that later. The sooner this little orientation for Berry was over, the better.

"No, I haven't, although Jesse's explained quite a few to me," Rachel was saying.

"Cass will take care of that for you," Shelby interrupted before turning to Cassidy. "Rachel will join you later. She's insisted on actually attending classes, says she can handle it. I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt. You can attend to today's hopefuls." The last sentence was accompanied by a nudge at the pile of purple forms that had been stacked neatly on one end of her desk.

There were always people wanting to get into Vocal Adrenaline. Always. It never really stopped. Everyday, they saw at least twenty of those applicants. Most of the time it was the closest thing they had to a break compounded with comedy hour. Cassidy usually took over, with help from her unofficial assistant Natalie Parker and the Belles.

The Belles were something in themselves-Arianna, Savannah, Regina and Veronica Sawyer-whose middle names were all Belle, hence the moniker-were identical quadruplets with flaming red hair. As if on cue, they popped their heads in, asking about the day's auditions. Shelby motioned towards the pile, to which they nodded. "We're ready!"

Rachel watched as Cassidy all but skipped towards the seemingly daunting pile and picked it all up with ease. A very small voice at the back of her head was telling her that she should just walk out the door, go back to McKinley and patch things up with everyone. Then she remembered the events of the past month and shook her head. This was definitely better for all the parties involved, especially for herself.

Jesse squeezed her shoulder, and she gave him a grateful smile. There were definitely still feelings there, but they had both agreed to be friends and professionals for now. Their romantic history, while good for onstage chemistry, was far too convoluted to delve into while she was finding her way through the very different environment that was Carmel High.

"We'd better get on these," Cassidy was saying. Rachel watched as Shelby conferred with her for a moment about the files at the top of the pile. After Cassidy had left, the Belles trailing after her, Shelby turned back to Rachel. "Your jacket will be given to you later; I still have your size from that Gaga dress fitting. It's the same, right?" she paused to get Rachel's answer, which was a nod, before continuing. "Good. Now let's see...I think that's it. Jesse will take care of everything else. And now that we've covered the bases, let's talk about your first performance at rehearsal later..."

-x-X-x-X-x-

Mary Blossom Stanton had never been more nervous in her life. Considering she'd been raised in a social circle that involved politicians because of her grandfather, that was saying a lot. She was the very first grandchild of the vice-president of the United States who, prior to taking office as second-in-command, had been a senator and corporate lawyer.

Born with a silver spoon was thus an understatement for Bloom, who was pretty used to getting what she wanted. As she got older, she discovered she had a love for the arts, and soon decided that she would be an actress. Far from the expected attitude from a spoiled, pretty blonde with blue eyes and a slender figure from a prominent family, however, she decided she was going to earn her place in lights.

She first found out about Vocal Adrenaline after they had been invited to perform for a state dinner, since they were the National champions. They had stayed for the dinner itself, and while she'd struck conversation with several members, she was drawn in particular to Howie Kensington, one of the members. The two hit it off almost instantly.

Howie hailed from a prominent family himself, a branch of no less than the British royal court. Unlike Bloom, however, he was largely ignored and verbally abused by his parents ever since he was a small child. It was probably because Howie had discovered early on that he was gay, something that did not sit well with his parents. When he brought up the idea of studying in America they were more than eager to send their 'shameful black sheep' away.

It didn't take very long for Bloom to decide that she wanted in on the fun of being in show choir. It was a lot of work, she knew; Howie didn't sugarcoat anything and usually went into detail whether she asked or not. Oddly enough, that just made her all the more determined to get in.

When Howie had brought the idea up with Shelby, she immediately set up a meeting between herself and Bloom through Skype. She was concerned, she explained to Bloom, that the young girl was simply going through a rebellious phase. Vocal Adrenaline required commitment, dedication, and a strong gut.

Talent was an obvious requirement.

_"They think all I am is 'the granddaughter'. That's all I ever hear. I'm so much more than that. I'm also so much more than an ordinary blonde. Ms. Corcoran, placing me in Vocal Adrenaline would boost your team to even greater heights. And it would be giving me a chance to be myself," Bloom had emphatically replied._

_And then she sang, playing the piano on which she had set her laptop._

_I'm just a little bit caught in the middle_

_Life is a maze and love is a riddle_

_I don't know where to go_

_Can't do it alone, I've tried _

_and I don't know why_

_Shelby watched her with an almost bored expression. Bloom was unfazed; she kept going, pulling on her best showface as she went._

_Slow it down, make it stop _

_Or else my heart is going to pop_

_'Cause it's too much, yeah it's a lot_

_To be something I'm not_

_I'm a fool out of love_

_'cause I just can't get enough_

_"She's more than just a pretty face," Howie had said. "She's also more than just a regular pop belter. She could've tried for American Idol and gotten it, but she chose to try for VA." Shelby listened to it all with a grain of salt; she knew how close he was to Bloom, and while she didn't think he would exaggerate, he could've been blinded by bias._

_I'm just a little bit caught in the middle_

_Life is a maze and love is a riddle_

_I don't know where to go_

_can't do it alone I've tried _

_and I don't know why_

_I'm just a little girl lost in the moment_

_I'm so scared but I don't show it_

_I can't figure it out_

_It's bringing me down I know_

_I've got to let it go _

_and just enjoy the show_

_Biased or not, Shelby decided, Howie was right. Her facial expression shifted slightly, which Bloom caught. It fueled her to smile even wider and sing with more feeling than she ever had before. _

_The sun is hot in the sky _

_Just like a giant spotlight_

_The people follow the signs and synchronize in time_

_It's a joke_

_Nobody knows_

_They've got a ticket to the show_

_Yeah, I'm just a little bit caught in the middle_

_Life is a maze and love is a riddle_

_I don't know where to go, can't do it alone_

_I've tried and I don't know why_

_I'm just a little girl lost in the moment_

_I'm so scared but I don't show it-_

_"Stop," Shelby had barked. "I've seen and heard enough. I'll see you here in Ohio. Prepare more songs, you're doing a personal audition. I'll have Jesse himself make arrangements for you to be flown out here.."_

_Bloom had replied by saying she was fine for flight arrangements and accomodations, when did she want her there?_

_"Talk to Jesse."_

Before she knew it, Bloom was on a jet to Ohio, accompanied-much to her annoyance-by four security members.

And that's where she was at the moment. Pacing the hall outside Carmel's massive auditorium, trying not to compare herself to the other people in the line. A lot of them were native to the area, but some of them had flown in from places like Brazil and Spain.

_I have to nail this audition. I have to get into Vocal Adrenaline. This needs to happen for me._

Cassidy popped her head out of the doors right then. "Okay, everybody. Split that line. Boys on the left, girls on the right. Fifteen seconds." Bloom moved fast, as did several others. A few seemed to take their time, and a few more didn't hear her at all-they were absorbed in their iPods and sheet music and phones.

As she stepped out to stand between the two lines, Cassidy laughed and pointed out the ones that were still loitering. "You lot, thank you for coming, don't audition again." A flurry of "I haven't even-", "What do you mean?" and other similar whines resulted, with almost all of the rejected women bawling on the spot.

Cassidy simply sighed and held the door open. "The rest of you, in here."

The two lines piled cautiously and quietly into the auditorium, slipping into the rows labeled AUDITIONEES - MALE and AUDITIONEES - FEMALE. From where they were seated they could see a long-haired brunette seated at what seemed to be an elevated podium. It didn't take very long for whispers to go down the line. "That's her-that's Shelby Corcoran!"

There was no sign of Howie, and Bloom forced herself to breathe. She patted her jeans-inhaler, check. She had been prone to allergies as a child and while she still had breathing problems, she usually managed to keep it in check.

Soon the woman sitting in the chair raised a hand, and Cassidy-who had moved to stand on the stage-walked up to the sole microphone sitting there. "Welcome to Vocal Adrenaline auditions. We start right now."

The first auditionee, a lanky, dark girl named Phoebe Volico, got as far as the first line of her audition song. Shelby stopped her with a curt "next" without even looking up. Phoebe burst into tears, but neither the coach nor Cassidy seemed to notice.

This went on for the next half hour. Some time later, a boy named Raphael Hotchner III took the stage.

Unlike almost everyone else that was in the room, Raphael wasn't gung-ho over getting into Vocal Adrenaline at all. The only reason he was trying out at all was that his mother had been a VA member in her youth and had always dreamed, ever since he showed interest in music at a young age, that he would be too.

Also, it would get him out of class-and keep him busy enough so that his father couldn't drag him to anything that involved the family business.

Shelby actually looked up when he took the stage. Everyone else in the room figured it was because he was in tight, bright pink leather pants that shone; those were bound to catch the attention of anyone who was in the remote vicinity, really.

The reason the seasoned coach had looked up, though, wasn't so much for the pants as it was the information on his audition form. Raphael was the only son of _the _Raphael Hotchner Jr., oil magnate extraordinaire.

"I'm singing Neon by John Mayer," Raphael matter-of-factly stated as he strummed his guitar. The sharp contrast of his hot pink pants and the lacquer on his vintage Fender was compounded by the tightness of his basic black shirt covered in splotches of paint.

_When sky blue gets dark enough_

_To see the colors of the city lights_

_A trail of ruby red and diamond white_

_Hits her like a sunrise_

Everyone was captivated. Everyone, that is, but Shelby. While the coach _had _looked up, her facial expression was stoic. Observant. Raphael took this as a sign to push even harder.

_She comes and goes_

_And comes and goes_

_Like no one can_

_Tonight she's out to lose herself_

_Find her high on Peachtree street_

_From mixed drinks to techno beats it's always beats_

_Heavy into everything_

"He's good," Cassidy murmured to no one in particular. One glance at the two rows of auditionees would show that practically everyone else in the room was thinking the very same thing.

_She comes and goes_

_And comes and goes_

_Like no one can_

_She comes and goes and no one knows_

_She's slipping through my hands_

Raphael gained momentum, the way he always did when he played anything by Mayer. He tried doing the moonwalk as he hit the chorus.

_She's always buzzing just like_

_Neon, neon_

_Neon, neon_

_Neon, neon_

_Who knows how long, how long, how long_

_She can go before she burns away_

In her seat in the audience, Bloom was torn between really getting into the performance and feeling somewhat uncomfortable. She'd come across John Mayer in her lifetime, and had almost-but-not-quite gone on an unofficial-but-something-might-come-out-of-this date with him. That...hadn't ended well.

Shelby finally raised a hand, signalling for Raphael to stop. And then, for the first time that afternoon, she spoke.

"Welcome to Vocal Adrenaline."

The room burst into applause.

-x-X-x-X-x-

It was no use. No matter what Mr. Schuester said, did, or even sang (he'd tried doing a solo version of Don't Stop Believing, and attempting to laugh off how hard he bombed hadn't done anything either) the kids of New Directions were positively down in the dumps.

"Mr. Schue, we're all just going to go home," Quinn sighed, getting up from her seat on the floor. The others began following suit. The teacher finally relented, staying silent as he watched the kids trickle out the door. They had been on pins and needles waiting for news on Rachel; as far as ND were concerned, the decision was whether or not Rachel would stay in WMHS or move to California, where her one of her dads had family.

Will Schuester knew better. The Berry men had not been happy with Finn's actions, and had threatened to file sexual harrassment charges. In the ensuing talks, Rachel's intent to move to Carmel and join Vocal Adrenaline came to light. He'd decided not to tell Kurt or any of the others because he knew Rachel would do the right thing.

Well, he hoped so, anyway.

Mercedes, who had pulled out her phone and had been going through it as she walked, suddenly froze in her spot. After awhile, she let out an emphatic "Oh _hell _to the no!"

Everyone rushed to crowd around her, faces lined with worry. Mr. Schuester walked right up to her and held out his hand. "What is it, Mercedes?"

She had been on Twitter and her screen was displaying a Tweet from the official Vocal Adrenaline page.

_vocaladrenaline: The baby girl of thevacoach is all grown up, and she's finally come home! Welcome to the family rberrystar! _

-x-X-x-X-x-

A whine bounced off the auditorium walls. "Mommy, you have to be joking!"

"I'm dead serious, actually," Shelby replied matter-of-factly to the wide-eyed teenager on the stage, "just do it."

Auditions having yielded a few survivors, Vocal Adrenaline was well into their rehearsal. It wasn't a question-there was always something to win, and they were always going to want to win it. It was just how they were.

Shelby had singled Sunshine Corazon out and asked her to sing _Listen_ again. When she finished, Shelby made her do it again, without any music. After that, the older brunette had pursed her lips, made a motion towards the stage, and told Sunshine to run her scales after some water and a five-minute break.

As she was running her scales, she was handed sheet music: _What Is This Feeling_. She blinked in surprise. Broadway? She wasn't too good with that stuff. Nonetheless, she found it easy to read, and wasn't surprised that she would be Galinda.

What she didn't realize was that that wasn't the surprise. Her counterpart for Elphaba was. Sunshine had expected Denise Walker to take Elphaba-with her throaty yet high tone, Denise was the most likely candidate out of the roster to sing this with her.

Sunshine prided herself on being a pretty strong girl. Her childhood back in the Philippines hadn't been easy, but it wasn't exactly a sob story. Still, when she got the opportunity to move to the US thanks to a job offer her mom had, she jumped at the chance. Her father hadn't been happy, but Sunshine had stopped caring about what he thought ever since he'd started paying more attention to his alcohol than his family.

Most likely because of her history, very few things fazed her.

Rachel walking onto the stage and standing next to her was one of those things.

Sunshine could barely speak. It wasn't a VA secret that Rachel was Shelby's biological daughter. It wasn't a secret that Rachel and Jesse were something of a mutually-exclusive item either. Or something like that. But…why did Shelby want her to sing with…_her_? Didn't she know? Was transferring to Carmel a bad idea after all?

Before she could find words, Rachel came right up to her with a smile.

"Hello, Sunshine. I hope we can start over," Rachel quickly said, smiling faintly as her hands straightened her already-smoothed out pleated skirt. "I'm aware that I have done some rather unpleasant things to you, but I think that as performers we can both agree that it's always good to put personal matters behind us when it comes to performing." She stopped fidgeting with her skirt, putting her hands behind her back. "I suppose now is not the time to talk, however, as we're supposed to sing. Are you familiar with Wicked?"

Out of everything Rachel had said, Sunshine's brain had processed very little. She was still rather dumbstruck, doubly so by the fact that Rachel was in a VA jacket. _What is going on…? _She shook her head, however, and managed to snap out of it when she'd realized Rachel had asked her a question.

"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" she asked.

"Are you familiar with Wicked? The song we're going to sing is from an amazing Broadway show," Rachel responded.

Shaking her head, Sunshine began to say something, but Shelby clapped her hands from her seat. "Ladies, chatty cathy types don't win competitions. Sunshine, do you need a run-through of the song?"

The smaller girl nodded, biting her lip. Not a minute later the auditorium filled with music, and she closed her eyes as the song played, picking up on the Galinda parts. Rachel, who had moved to the other end of the stage, had closed her eyes and was singing softly along.

After the twelfth time, Sunshine went back to her original spot, nodding at Shelby. The music stopped, snapping Rachel out of her reverie.

"Begin," Shelby barked as the opening strains began.

_Dearest darlingest momsie and popsicle_

Sunshine was glad the song wasn't cheesy or overly happy. There was no way she could do that in a song with Rachel.

_My dear father_

Rachel had had reservations about singing with Sunshine, but Shelby had told her she had to. Given the circumstances, she didn't have a choice, but she'd asked to at least have a say in the song.

_There's been some confusion over rooming here at Shiz_

They looked at each other, almost like seeing each other for the first time.

_But of course I'll care for Nessa_

_But of course I'll rise above it_

_For I know that's how you'd want me to respond, yes_

_There's been some confusion for you see my roommate is_

The pause that followed seemed to last forever.

_Unusually and exceedingly peculiar and altogether quite impossible to describe_

Sunshine smiled. The little part of her that had reservations vanished. So what if she held sheet music with lyrics and Rachel didn't? She didn't know the song that well, but catching the drift wasn't so hard.

_Blonde_

Rachel's heart was pounding. Sunshine was singing the song like she'd known it for longer than five minutes. Shelby was right-the girl was practically a sponge. She could absorb things fast.

_What is this feeling_

_So sudden and new_

Sunshine bounced a bit, stalking towards Rachel like a cheetah stalking prey.

_I felt the moment I laid eyes on you_

When she realized what Sunshine was doing Rachel raised a brow, backing up a bit.

_My pulse is rushing_

_My head is reeling_

_My face is flushing_

_What is this feeling_

_Fervid as a flame_

_Does it have a name_

_Yes_

_Yes_

Rachel had found her bearings after awhile, stalking right up to Sunshine herself as they sang.

_Loathing_

_Unadulterated loathing_

Soon enough, they were both moving around the stage, practically sizing each other up.

_For your face_

Sunshine could see that the others had somehow formed two groups, one on each side of the stage. Jesse stood with the group by Rachel. That wasn't unexpected.

_Your voice_

Rachel had noticed, too. She didn't know that part of the performance, although she knew that there was indeed a part of the song that required a chorus line. She saw Jesse in her corner and smiled.

_Your clothing_

The line came out slightly snappier than she'd intended. There wasn't much Sunshine could do, though. She was annoyed that Rachel was in a VA jacket, after all.

_Let's just say_

_I loathe it all_

_Every little trait however small_

_Makes my very flesh begin to crawl_

_With simple utter loathing_

And just like that, as if they'd been part of the performance all along, the rest of VA kicked in as the chorus, striding to make equal lines behind both Rachel and Sunshine.

_There's a strange exhilaration_

_In such total detestation_

_So pure, so strong_

_Though I do admit it came on fast_

_Still I do believe that it can last_

_And I will be loathing_

_Loathing_

_You_

_My whole life _

_Long_

As the chorus kicked in and Sunshine began her piece, she watched Rachel carefully out of the corner of her eye, then stole a glance at Shelby. Something was definitely up.

_Well, these things are sent to try us_

As the solo wore on, Rachel took the time to give Sunshine a proper once over. There was a lot more to her, she decided, than she'd originally thought.

_What is this feeling_

_So sudden and new_

_I felt the moment_

_I laid eyes on you_

_My pulse is rushing_

_My head is reeling_

_Oh_

_What is this feeling_

_Does it have a name_

_Fervid as a flame_

_Yeah, yeah_

Both girls instinctively began moving towards their initial spots, facing off on each side of the stage with a gaggle of VA members behind them.

_There's a strange exhilaration_

_In such total detestation_

_It's so pure so strong_

_Though I do admit it came on fast_

_Still I do believe that it can last_

_And I will be_

_Loathing_

_For forever_

_Loathing_

_Truly deeply loathing you_

_Loathing you_

_My whole_

_Life_

_Long_

The others kicked in and Sunshine finally turned to the audience. It consisted of Shelby and Atari; it was still an audience, though. That was one of the main rules in VA: if they're watching you perform, whether it's one or ten, it's still an audience.

When the music ended, both girls stood panting for breath, looking at Shelby for an assessment.

"Interesting competition we have here," Shelby replied after a moment of looking them over. "Ladies and gentlemen, Rachel Barbra Berry. Our newest member."

Sunshine was fairly sure Shelby had said something else, but that was the last thing she heard before everything went to black.


	3. ACT 2: BRACING FOR IMPACT

**Author's Note:** _Told you guys it wouldn't take me over a year to update again! Thank you to everyone that reads and reviews and stuff. It means a whole lot more than I can ever explain. _

_I've gotten new reviews since my last post, and I wanted to say thank you. Especially to the true-to-life Shelby Corcoran, alethea-writes, who made me burst into tears! Hee. ^^, Awesome birthday gift. (I turned 23 while I wasn't around FF/updating, a few months ago :p) _

_Big thanks to my Beta, miss Alice-Katniss-Nina-Bee. :P_

_The good news is Act 3 is already running. So maybe I'll be able to put it up in a month or so! In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this newest chapter. :)_

* * *

><p><strong>ACT 2: Bracing For Impact<strong>

Cassidy cleared her throat before calling out, in a no-nonsense tone, "STANTON, MARY BLOSSOM BI—"

"HERE, RIGHT HERE!" Bloom yelled at the top of her lungs before her maiden name was declared to the world. The rest of the room, which had been abuzz, fell silent.

The last thing she needed was to be labeled as 'the granddaughter' again. Not that quite a few people hadn't realized who she was, or at least suspected as much, no thanks to campaign season coming around. As the favorite of her grandfather, not to mention his eldest grandchild, media knew who she was. Not that she wasn't proud of her grandfather, she was, very much so. She just…wanted to be herself. As she made her way to the front of the room, she eyed the long rack of brand new Vocal Adrenaline jackets and the small, neatly piled boxes simply labeled 'RR'. Out of what seemed like a million people earlier in the day, four hours of initial auditions and six (yes, six) hours of Vocal Adrenaline rehearsals later, there were only thirty of them left. Some, like that Raphael Hotchner guy, had been accepted instantly. Over half of the rest of them, including Bloom, still had no idea where they actually stood.

They were about to find out.

_If this were America's Next Top Model_, Bloom thought to herself, _to be the first name called out would be a good thing. Then again, Cassidy is no Tyra_. The last bit made her smile, and she managed to stop herself from shaking as she reached the center of the stage.

"Welcome to Vocal Adrenaline," Cassidy smiled. Bloom immediately recognized the showface. It wasn't hard with Cassidy; it didn't seem like she ever actually smiled. With her, Bloom was reminded of the recurrent tales of Vocal Adrenaline's lack of soul.

Bloom smiled brightly. "Thank you!" Cassidy shook her hand-stiffly-and motioned her towards the rack and pile. She went on to explain over the microphone that every new member got a generic jacket, but for as long as they were at least sixteen they would also already get their own standard-issue VA vehicle. Bloom managed not to laugh as she gently lifted the boxes marked RR, which she now knew stood for Range Rover. Here we go, she thought to herself. _Wonder where Howie is._

In the crowd, sixteen-year-old Chloe Monvera's heart was racing. Her audition had gone better than she expected; then again, part of her was sure that Shelby wouldn't have let her get past the first two notes of Genie In A Bottle, the big Christina Aguilera hit. This was even if she'd done it in her best fusion of Spanish and English, with dance moves, minus the shiny red-and-silver pantsuit thing. After all, the standards of Vocal Adrenaline were known far and wide.

"MONVERA, CHLOE VALENCIA GUADALUPE!"

Here goes nothing, Chloe sighed inwardly. Her entire body felt heavy, but she forced herself to stand and stow her phone into the back pocket of her dark jeans. The message she'd just gotten from her father hadn't done anything to help her already frayed nerves. At least it ends here. If she got into Vocal Adrenaline, her life would quite literally be changed for the better.

She made her way up the stage in time to see the dizzying redheads emerge from the other side. She couldn't remember their names, but they were collectively known as both The Belles and The Quads; that much, she knew.

"You're going to have a final pop test right now," Cassidy was saying to Chloe. "The Belles are going to help you a little bit. You listed The Cheetah Girls as an influence," she paused, the inflection on the band's name hinting at mockery, "so right here and right now, you'll be doing their song Fuego."

Well, Chloe hadn't been expecting that. The quadruplets were suddenly surrounding her, clapping the intro in and shuffling her to the center of the stage. She barely had time to take a breath, but she managed to latch on to the final beat just leading into the first line.

_We're movin' just like the ocean_

_It's pullin' you in with every motion_

_You can't stop with a beat this hot_

_Como fuego, fuego (fuego, fuego)_

_We're bringing out of you the islands_

_And it's oh so hot, poppin' out the hydrants_

_In the streets all the kids they scream _

_Como fuego, fuego (fuego, fuego)_

The dance moves were easy-thankfully, it seemed The Belles were generally following the Disney-prescribed movements in the video, although they kept glancing at Chloe as if waiting for a cue. The others in the room had stood and started to cheer; some of them danced along in their seats. Chloe finally understood. She smirked, bursting through the four girls, taking the center and rolling her hips. Vocal Adrenaline wasn't the Disney channel, after all, so she figured she could take some liberties.

_The OC to the Lower East Side_

_We're gonna set the night on fire_

_Jersey down to the islands_

_It's all night long_

_Come on now_

_From Miami and LA to the Chi_

_We're gonna set the night on fire_

_Hitsville to the ATL_

_It's all night long_

_Come on now_

Shelby had appeared in the back of the auditorium, and Chloe could have sworn the woman was looking into her soul. She did her best to ignore the presence, turning up her dancing all the more. The Belles seemed to be gravitating towards some of the males on the sidelines, and Chloe took it as a cue to somewhat do the same. After all, fuego meant fire._ Be careful what you wish for. Challenge accepted._

__When Chloe finally finished, she was red and out of breath-but it didn't matter. Someone had draped a jacket around her, and one of the Belles placed a box in her hands.

-x-X-x-X-x-

"How could you do this to us?!"

"What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Traitor!"

"Some friend you are!"

When Rachel walked into her home from her first day at Carmel, she found every single member of New Directions in her living room. As soon as they saw her, they leapt to their feet and started all but yelling at her as they practically backed her against a wall. They were joined by Blaine Anderson, Kurt's boyfriend; the dark-haired boy was a Warbler from Dalton Academy, but he was Rachel's friend anyway. Although, given the way they were all regarding her as she slowly tried to put some semblance of personal space between them, she had no idea if they were still her friends at all.

The collective yelling died down considerably when one of Rachel's dads came running into the room. If the situation weren't serious it would've been funny; just as Hiram Berry demanded "Just what is going on here?" all the noise came to a halt. All that was missing was the prerequisite sound of a record skipping. Or crickets.

Instinctively putting a hand on one of Rachel's shoulders, Hiram cleared his throat and gave the teens in the room a look as he spoke. "I understand that you are all here to question why Rachel is now in Carmel, thus now being in Vocal Adrenaline-which was ultimately a family decision, mind you-but that does not give any of you the right to create a ruckus in our very living room!"

Rachel, flushed, turned to her dad and managed a smile. "It's okay. I was expecting this. It's okay. We're just going to talk. Nothing ma-" She was instantly interrupted by her other dad, LeRoy, coming into the room as well...followed closely by Jesse. In her shock at seeing New Directions and the instant onslaught of angry cries, she'd completely forgotten that Jesse had come home with her. She took a deep breath and kept her smile on, not quite wanting to turn around just yet.

For his part, Jesse had somewhat anticipated this would happen. New Directions wasn't one to take things lightly, and somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that even if Rachel was their favorite source of mean-spirited humor (and that they were really all just jealous of her), some part of each of them regarded her as a friend. The dark-haired boy in the blazer took him by surprise and for a moment, he wondered if the Warblers had any vested interest in Rachel as well.

He wouldn't worry about that now.

Besides, the way Finn was looking from Rachel to him and back again seemed ominous. Jesse had never been a fan of the quarterback, who he considered dumber than Moose Mason from the Archie comics of his childhood. Then again, Moose was dumb but likable; Finn was dumb and...well, he was Finn. Jesse was even less impressed by the time he had realized that the latter had been emotionally abusive towards Rachel for quite some time. And that episode where he cornered her and kissed her even if she didn't want anything to do with him? That had been the last straw. There were zero point zero redeeming qualities for Finn Hudson as a human being for Jesse St. James.

In one fluid movement Jesse was by Rachel's side, and she slipped from Hiram's grip into Jesse's arms. He hugged her as New Directions slowly began to go back to where they'd been sitting. There were death glares aimed at him, some more blatant than others, but that didn't matter.

Rachel was all that mattered.

"That's better," Hiram finally said, nodding at the seated, now-stunned New Directions. "Rachelina, your daddy and I will be in the kitchen when you're all done. Jesse," he continued, regarding the pair beside him with a pointed, sideways glare at Finn, "please stay for dinner. You know how much of a joy it is for us to have you around." With a pointed smile at the two, he took LeRoy's hand and the two sauntered off to the kitchen.

Rachel could only smile and nod as she watched her dads walk away. With a deep sigh, she turned to face the room again. They had fallen silent, but if looks could kill, she was pretty sure they would all have been guilty of murdering Jesse. The list of suspects for that, she was certain, would be topbilled by Finn. Inwardly sighing, she moved towards the piano seat, which happned to be the only available one in the entire living room. Jesse followed her silently, warily keeping an eye on Finn as they moved, wrapping an arm around her waist when they both settled down. The irony of their seating position wasn't lost on either of them, although they were in no mood to laugh about it the way they could have.

If a pin had dropped right then and there they would have all heard it.

"So," Rachel finally said, "we all need to have a talk. Hello, everyone. In case you are curious, to start with, Jesse offered to accompany me home today because I wasn't sure if I could drive. That is why he is here."

"You left us for him, didn't you," Finn seethed before anyone else could react. He had been seated on one of the sofas, hunched over and glowering like some odd teenage manifestation of the Hulk. As he spoke, he stood, nearly shoving Brittany off the seat, causing Santana to frown at him. The only reason the long-haired brunette held off was she was preoccupied with making sure the blonde was okay. "You left us for that poofy-haired self-centered no-soul donkeyhead, and you left us because you're mad at me!"

"Oh my god, Finn, this is so much bigger than you!" Kurt snapped, leaping from the darker couch where he and Blaine had settled. "You're not going to turn this into a personal attack on just you, big guy. We're all equally affected by Rachel's decision, and we're all here to deal with it. I don't want you to even think about starting to go on and on about your relationship or whatever. Do it on your own time. Right now, we're here as New Directions. Together. Now calm down and start talking sense or we-" he flicked his hand towards Quinn and Artie as he spoke "-will be forced to take over."

"Let him be, Porcelain," Santana hissed. "He'll reach the point eventually. When we're all covered in cobwebs, maybe."

"Shut it, Santana," Quinn frowned, leaning over with a scowl.

"Make me," the Latina replied, getting to her feet.

"Okay, okay!" Finn sighed, voice rising over the din. "Okay. Fine. Santana, sit down. We need to talk this out. I get it. Fine."

"Fucking moron," Santana cursed under her breath as she flopped back down on the couch. She crossed her arms and glared pointedly at Finn before training her gaze towards Rachel again. Brittany reached over, patting her arm and trying to get her to at least smile, but the dark-haired Cheerio was having none of it.

"Donkeyhead...?" the blonde asked, blinking. For once, nobody seemed to notice.

On her end, Rachel watched it all unfold and unconsciously snuggled closer to Jesse, who rubbed her back as he tried his best not to laugh at the sheer ridiculousness that New Directions was displaying. As far as he was concerned they were practically worthless without her. This was simply their way of acting out over finally realizing it. Too little too late? Jesse certainly thought so.

When Rachel finally straightened up somewhat, Jesse instinctively took her hand in his, and she didn't argue, flinch, or try to shake him off. If anything, she moved as if to twine their fingers together. That made him smile to himself a little; they had agreed they would stay friends, after all, and take anything else that could come up very very slowly. Hand-holding was something he had missed when it came to being with Rachel. This was a start.

"Judging from the events of the past fifteen minutes or so," Rachel was saying, a slight steel in her tone, "I don't actually know if it's wise for us to have a dialogue right now. I am not avoiding the subject matter at hand, nor am I afraid to explain in great detail how and why I ultimately arrived at this decision. While it is true that an in-depth dialogue is necessary, especially since as far as I'm concerned, for me, you are all still my friends...collectively and individually, emotions are high right now." She paused to take a breath, narrowly avoiding a speech in itself from Kurt by raising her tone and carrying on like she hadn't noticed.

It was to Kurt's credit that he let her keep going. Blaine had taken his hands warmly in his, and perhaps that was a good chunk of what kept him calmer than usual.

"You of all people know how tirelessly I work, especially when it comes to a performance. Especially when it involves being in the lead role, the starring role, which we all know is where I belong. The academic workload in Carmel is surprisingly more advanced than William McKinley's in several ways, so that in itself is exhausting. Add my rehearsal sessions with Vocal Adrenaline and I guarantee you," Rachel went on, pausing only to catch her breath, "that it is my sheer perseverance and innate ability to produce excessive amounts of stamina especially when it comes to performing in any way shape or form that I am not fast asleep on the couch or, had I somehow managed to retain any sense of movement that would have allowed me to ascend the stairs, my bed. I'm quite sure I'm bordering on harboring quite a few bruises, and am honestly quite surprised that I can remember my homework from the academic side of things."

Jesse, who had been watching and listening to Rachel the whole time, moved to rub her back a little when he realized she was finally done. "I'm quite sure I'm the last person any of you want to hear from, but Rachel is absolutely right. Besides, at this point," he paused, looking pointedly at Finn, "I think her dads would appreciate a more peaceful vibe going around their house, especially since they're about to have dinner."

As if on cue, Hiram and LeRoy strode into the room looking less than pleased. The former spoke first. "Kids, we understand that there are serious issues going on between everyone right now, but don't you have other things to do? Perhaps you can come back some other day." As he spoke, LeRoy casually went over to the piano. Jesse and Rachel, who were still holding hands, shifted slightly as he approached; both had inwardly sighed with relief when the elder men had entered. "Rachel, tinoket, you're pale...really, enough of this. Come, come. Jesse, you're staying, aren't you?" LeRoy paused as Jesse nodded slightly. "Good. That's settled. Now, the rest of you, please. Please go now," he half-sighed. Exasperation was evident both in his face and Hiram's.

Finally realizing they were practically being thrown out of there, Tina stood, clearing her throat and pulling Mike up with her. "Rachel's right, emotions are high right now. Guys, I have the same questions you do and some of my own, and I'm really upset, we're all really upset, and..." she trailed off, looking at Mike, who piped up. "Tina has a point. We should really all just go cool off."

Everyone except for Finn and Quinn began preparing to leave as well; the former because he was still glowering at Jesse, and the latter because she somehow felt it was her job to watch over Finn. Kurt and Blaine approached Rachel's dads, and Kurt cleared his throat. "We're really sorry to have barged in on you like this, Mr. & Mr. Berry," he began, holding out his hand. "There's just a lot going on right now and Rachel not being in New Directions tipped the scale somewhat."

Hiram smiled at Kurt, one that was warmer than the one he'd been using on the group earlier. "As long as it doesn't happen again," he replied, watching LeRoy escort the rest to the door. He couldn't help but notice how Finn kept glaring over his shoulder in Jesse and Rachel's direction; he would worry about that later. Kurt looked so uncomfortable, and the dapper young man beside him seemed doubly so. "You must be Blaine," Hiram said in a slightly chipper tone. When both Kurt and Blaine seemed surprised, he managed a laugh. "Burt calls us every so often, he inadvertently told us about you before Kurt could. This isn't the time for catching up, unfortunately. Perhaps you can join us for dinner on another day, the both of you."

"That would be really nice, Mr. Berry. Right now we're just going to get out of here so you can have dinner in peace," Blaine grinned, twining his fingers with Kurt's. "I'm sorry we had to meet like this. Kurt has told me so much about you."

By that time everyone else was awkwardly standing in the Berry driveway, on their phones; Quinn and Puck were helping Artie into the former's truck. Mike and Tina, at the prodding of the others, had engaged Finn in a conversation about a new song-and-dance number. The latter was mostly paying attention, although part of him wanted to storm back inside and get Rachel back. Hiram managed, gently, to send Kurt and Blaine outside as well. When they had stepped out, he cleared his throat and addressed them all.

"Please, we're all civilized people here. I think it would be best if you call before coming back here. All of you. It will be much easier on Rachel that way, and certainly much much easier on myself and LeRoy. We're not getting any younger," Hiram said calmly, "and violence, whether it's physical or emotional, gets nobody nowhere quite fast."

A murmur of apologies rippled through the group. Kurt and Blaine made a quiet beeline for their ride while Finn stomped off to his. As they all made their way elsewhere, Hiram breathed a sigh of relief, heading back into the house and towards the dining area.

For their part, Rachel and Jesse had moved into the kitchen with LeRoy. There was a happier ambiance there; Jesse had offered to whip something up, and had predictably broken into song as he went. Rachel had found music on her iTouch, turned that on, and chimed in to join him. Soon enough LeRoy jumped in as well, and the three were singing songs from the classic film South Pacific. The final strains of Bloody Mary were fading out just as Hiram entered, and he wasted no time chiming in on the beginning of My Girl Back Home.

Rachel laughed, turning up the music, the near-confrontation with New Directions nearly forgotten. The smell of her father's cooking with Jesse's own filled her with a warmth she hadn't felt in awhile. Of course, she and Jesse were just friends. That's all there was to it. It was just really nice to have him around. It helped, of course, that her dads made no effort to hide how much they liked him.

On Jesse's end, the second Rachel's dads had walked in, the New Directions kerfluffle was as good as forgotten. The dagger stares and obvious seething rage of Finn wasn't lost on him, but other than that, as long as Rachel was okay nothing else was a concern. As the Berry family sang and laughed around him, he couldn't help but feel at home. It wasn't a new feeling, but the intensity with which he was feeling it now was a far cry from before.

The rest of the evening, he surmised, was going to be smooth sailing.

-x-X-x-X-x-

Shelby was prepared for Will to come storming into Carmel, possibly demanding that she "return" Rachel. Vocal Adrenaline had instructions, of course, as to what to do when he came around. It would only be a matter of time, after all. They had extra instructions from Jesse in case anyone from New Directions-especially "that giant oaf, Finn Hudson"-showed up as well.

That was probably why she didn't even bother looking up when Will barged into the auditorium just as Vocal Adrenaline were in the middle of a runthrough that involved actual flames. Just another day at the VA 'office', really, although anyone who walked by or walked in on them would probably call the police. Or something.

"Shelby, this is insane!" Will was practically yelling, red in the face. He hadn't actually planned to barge in on Vocal Adrenaline. Heck, he hadn't planned to confront Shelby in as much as talking to Rachel first. New Directions' collective hurt had made him lose whatever restraint he'd had, though. "You are definitely up to something and I know it! I don't know what it is, but your recent acquisition isn't a sheer matter of talent!"

That, and Shelby's Tweet was just plain asking for it:

_ thevacoach: Schuemeister I'd apologize, but my daughter is back where she belongs. You know where to find me if you want to 'talk it out'. ;)_


End file.
